Download Section 20.5

Yuan and Ming
Dynasties
The Mongol Conquest
-Genghis Khan, born
around 1162 in
modern-day
Mongolia
-Military genius
-Killed many and
destroyed cities
-Father of largest land
empire ever created
in the history of the
world
Mongol Conquest
--In 1279 Kublai Khan, Genghis’s grandson,
conquered all of China and declared himself
emperor
-Begins Yuan Dynasty, 1279-1368
-Foreigners ruled China for first
time
Life in Yuan Dynasty
-Mongols spoke a different lang. & worshipped
different gods, were tolerant of the Chinese
-Some Mongols adopted Confucianism
(The Mongols placed
heavy taxes on the Chinese)
-Chinese see Mongols as
inferior
Yuan Improvements to China
-Added to Grand Canal
-Built new roads and palaces
-Built a new capital - Dadu
Yuan Life
-Part of what we know
about Yuan Dynasty
comes from the writings
of an Italian merchant
Marco Polo traveled in &
around China for 24
years
The End of Yuan Dynasty
-Mongols invaded Japan (in 1274 and 1281)
-Bad storms (kamikaze winds) destroyed
most of Mongol force
The End of the Yuan Dynasty
-Chinese rebelled when Mongol forces
weakened
-In 1368, China was once again ruled by
Chinese
- Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)
Great Building Projects
-In Beijing, Ming emperors built the Forbidden City
Forbidden City- a huge palace
complex that included hundreds
of imperial residences, temples
and other gov’t buildings
(9,999 rooms)
-It was called the Forbidden City because common
people could not come inside
Great Building Projects
-Also worked to restore Great Wall
The Great Wall helped them feel safe from
northern invaders
Zheng He
-Zheng He was a great sailor during Ming
(He led 7 great voyages around Asia)
-Sailed throughout Indian Ocean (and as far
west as Persian Gulf)
Zheng He
-Zheng He - famous
Chinese
sailor/adventurer
-He bragged about
China wherever he
went
-China becomes more
knowledgeable about
the world outside of
China
Relations with other countries
-Zheng He returns to China
-Ming Emperor bans all foreign trade, China
entered a period of isolationism
Isolationism – a policy of avoiding contact with
other countries
-This hurt China by late 1800’s
(The West had made many technological
advances. Westerners were able to take
power because of China’s lack of progress
made it weak)